MILWAUKEE – County Supervisor Priscilla E. Coggs-Jones applauds the decade-long collaboration between public and private entities which led to the establishment of a new Mental Health Emergency Center located at 1525 N 12th Street.
“I am proud to fulfill my pledge to get more mental health services in the 10th District,” said Supervisor Coggs-Jones. “Mental health issues impact everything from education to homelessness to poverty. The new Mental Health Emergency Center is vital to Milwaukee County’s goal of becoming the healthiest county in Wisconsin. It is imperative that we ensure that county residents have access to high-quality patient-centered behavioral health services.”
The Mental Health Emergency Center will provide 24/7 crisis mental health services for children, adolescents, and adults; a therapeutic environment for both voluntary and involuntary patients; extensive care management; crisis telepsychiatry services; and a national model for patient-centered, recovery-oriented, and culturally informed care.
Milwaukee County and area health systems including Ascension Wisconsin, Advocate Aurora Health, Children’s Wisconsin, and Froedtert Health collaborated to bring the Mental Health Emergency Center into existence.
According to the National Institute of Mental Health 1 in 5 adults, or roughly 51.5 million adults, live with a mental illness in America.
According to the Milwaukee County Behavior Health Division the Wauwatosa Psychiatric Crisis Services (PCS) facility served more than 7,000 people in 2019. Approximately 90% of patients come from the City of Milwaukee. The new Mental Health Emergency Center is strategically located near 70% of patients. The PCS will continue to provide mental health care until the new Mental Health Emergency Center is operational.
The Mental Health Emergency Center will employ about 70 full-time equivalent staff and aims to be operational by the spring of 2022.
